A Crown Of Thorns And A Heart Of Glass
by Gangsta Videl
Summary: Hiei makes a promise he knows he can't keep, and to the one person whom least deserves to have their heart shattered. [HieiYukina]


A Crown Of Thorns And A Heart Of Glass  
  
A/N: O HO HO HO.... Kodachi laughter. Always fun. XD And if I could make this Hiei/car, I would. But Hiei doedn't have a car. So it's Hiei/Yukina. Ph34r teh pr0werz of teh 1nc3zt. XD Oh, it's not like she *knows*! Sheeeeeeesh. And this is my first published piece, I think. Whoohoo! ^^   
  
Disclaimer: ... do I *look* like I own YuYu Hakusho to you? No. I don't. So g'way and reeeeead. ^^  
  
*******  
  
Your brother's an idiot.  
  
Don't give me that look. You know I'm right. Why else has he stayed away from you?  
  
... no, he's not dead. Trust me on that one. I can't explain why just now, though. You'll... understand one day.  
  
*******  
  
Her sea-green hair fluttered in the breeze. The snow swirled around her ankles and her sandals, but she didn't even notice its icy touch.   
  
Her bright, red-as-blood eyes tilted towards the sky, warm and kind as ever.  
  
How ironic, then. A demon of ice with a warm heart. But that was Yukina---the pretty ice demon without a brother.  
  
Or, to be more specific: a brother she loved and longed for, every day, but whom she didn't know at all.  
  
And yet she did.  
  
From his perch in the tree, the fire demon Hiei shook his head and tugged the white bandana back over his Jagan eye. She was fine here, alone. She might be sad---a thought that hurt him, somewhere deep down---but in the end, it would always be better that she didn't know.  
  
She could only be disappointed in him, afterall.  
  
The branch gave a loud crack as he darted away, and the pretty young maid turned her head instantaneously to look and see what was the matter. The only thing she saw was the snow-covered branch snap and fall from the tree, burying itself in a mound of white.  
  
She gave a light sigh and smiled with relief. Ahh, it had been a fleeting, terrifying thought, the thought that someone was there, with evil intentions. She'd been taken hostage once; repeating that was nowhere on her "to do" list. In fact, she'd rather have died before being taken away again.  
  
Even if that meant never seeing her brother. Ever.  
  
*******  
  
But... I *don't* understand. What are you trying to say?  
  
... Oh, I see. He won't want to be found? Maybe.  
  
He probably wouldn't care much for a weak little sister like me, anyway...   
  
*******  
  
Another stupid Spirit Detective, Reikai Tantei mission, over and done with.  
  
The cold-hearted, tri-eyed demon, Hiei, stood and looked at the smouldering corpses with no interest or caring. Compassion was a wasted emotion, in his opinion; no one cared for him, most especially not this corpse.  
  
He pulled his black cloak into his hand, and wiped the blood off the blade of his katana. Such a stupid mess, those damned worthless demons made.  
  
At least this one had put up a semi-decent fight, he thought back. And it hadn't been alone, another almost-bonus of working with the infamous Yusuke Urameshi.  
  
Hiei gave the corpse a prod with his pointed boot, and nodded. More than just dead---when he killed something, it *stayed* dead. Unlike that towering idiot Kuwabara, anyway...   
  
The demon scowled bitterly. He remembered all-too well how the carrot-haired moron (his own words; Kurama had shaken his head in displeasure when he'd last voiced that opinion) has carried on about 'risking it all for the power of love.' At first, Hiei hadn't quite understood---not until the fool had made himself more clear by making himself look like an uneducated ass.  
  
"Doing it for Yukina", indeed. What did that oaf think he knew, anyway? What had he given up for her protection, her safety, her overall happiness *and* displeasure?  
  
Nothing. Wounds that could be healed in an instant with her powers could never account for the lengths *he'd* gone.  
  
"And he wonders why he's so despised," the dark-haired man muttered before turning and leaving the scene.   
  
Afterall, what had *he* ever lost... ?  
  
*******  
  
What? A disappointment? *You*?  
  
You shouldn't think that way. It's the other way around, most likely. He's an idiot---hiding and not wishing to see you.  
  
... no, I can't say why, or how I know. Can't you understand, this is the way he wants it?  
  
*******  
  
"How was... the mission?"  
  
The lanky Kuwabara grinned and tottered over to where Yukina and Keiko Yukimura were sitting, underneath the shade of one of the larger trees in the park. Yusuke and Kurama were there as well, though the dark-haired delinquient was most likely jabbering off to Kurama about how moronic his friend was behaving.  
  
For once, Hiei mirrored his sentiments.  
  
Even up in the tallest tree, he could see them plainly. Eagle-eyes, Kurama had once said. A stupid human phrase meaning that he had excellent eyesight.  
  
As if being compared to a *bird* was an honor of any kind.  
  
His face darkened as Kuwabara gave Yukina a colorful version of what had happened; how he, the 'dazzling hero', had gone in and slain twenty-thousand underlings.   
  
Hiei sneered. As if. The moron had actually been shoved in by Urameshi, who'd immediately punched out the demon closest to Kuwabara, who had screamed loudly.  
  
And then he'd produced his sword and made an almost decent attempt at fighting.  
  
... Almost.  
  
Kurama and himself had done most of the work, being demons themselves and always holding the upperhand. Urameshi wasn't half-bad, though---in fact, he was the only fighter Hiei allowed to live after beating him.  
  
Not that it had ever happened before. (And even if it had, any who might have done so were all dead and buried by now. As the human saying went, "dead men tell no tales.")  
  
"It was *great*, Yukina, baby!" the moron continued, wrapping an arm around the girl's slight shoulders. Hiei growled and his hand moved to the hilt of his sword. "Even after Shorty left, I *still* killed 'em all and led the team to victory!"  
  
"I see... " Yukina smiled, looking almost... impressed. Hiei choked on his breath. How was it possible to believe such nonsense?! She should know better by now, she---oh, no. Of course she couldn't---she didn't know him well enough for that.  
  
Fortunately, Kurama did.  
  
"That's not *entirely* how it happened," the whip-weilding boy corrected, taking a step closer to the couple. "Hiei fought harder than all of us, as if he had something to prove."  
  
Hiei snorted. Then Yusuke jumped in.  
  
"Yeah, Kuwabara, *you* were the one makin' all the fuss in there!" He grinned jauntily and pulled a face, somewhat resembling a Salvador Dali panting. "Oh, no, help me!" he called out in a high-pitched voice, his "I'm Kuwabara!" mock-voice. "It's *touching* me!"  
  
The boy in blue yelled several profanities, and Kurama sighed. Keiko, having moved away from her tree a moment before, scowled and gave the other schoolboy a whack across the head. Yusuke took it in stride and grinned at them all, as cheeky as ever.  
  
"I'll never understand those idiots," Hiei muttered to himself, allowing his body to fall into a seated position on the treebranch. It must have loosened the leaves, because the next thing he heard was a very gentle voice asking, "Isn't that Hiei, up there?", followed by several shouts for him to come down. He scowled and complied, landing almost perfectly, with his cloak swirling around himself. Even Kuwabara had to admit, the man had *class*.  
  
His eyes turned to the girl who'd first asked about him, the girl he barely dared to speak to, Yukina. She smiled warmly, and something tugged at his heart.  
  
'Damn,' he realized. 'Damn. Damn. Damn.'  
  
*******  
  
Why would anyone want to be seperated? I don't see why... am I too horrible to know?  
  
... I guess, maybe, it might make sense. I just wish I knew him... you know?  
  
Sometimes, I pretend that I find him, and... oh, you probably don't care to hear it.  
  
*******  
  
Kurama had forced them to go off alone. Kurama. The one who was supposed to *know**better*.  
  
The perpetual scowl on Hiei's face darkened tenfold. He could still hear the lunatic raving about "demon midgets" come to steal "his" girlfriend. Ha. As if Yukina would ever be *his* to claim.  
  
"She likes you," Kurama had said. "Like a friend... or a *brother*." It had been that one word, that nasty little warning, that had forced Hiei into the agreement in the first place. Talking to Yukina, alone... He knew what she'd ask. The one thing he knew he could not give to her; the truth.   
  
And it was all *Kurama's* fault.  
  
'Hate. Hate. Loathe. Hate. Damnation. Hate.'  
  
"Um, Hiei?"  
  
'Loathe. Loathe. Despise. Hate. Pa---'  
  
"Hiei?"  
  
The short, black-haired demon snapped his head up to look at the girl beside him. She was biting her lip and messing with the sleeve of her kimono nervously, an emotion he did not feel suited her in the least.  
  
"What?" he asked, a singular word that could do wonders on certain occasions. Odd thing, though---around Yukina, his voice was far from hostile.  
  
She looked down at her hands. The black-haired demon blinked on confusion---was she... sad? Over... *him*?  
  
That simply was *not* an option.  
  
"You've fought many other demons before, right?" Her red eyes tilted up towards his. He could see the hope in them, and something in his chest constricted. "With Kazuma, and the others?"  
  
The male gave a snort at the sound of the "idiotic moron's" first name. He didn't like her and "that freak" to be so close, even if it *did* make her happy. It was unnerving, and there was no way that gangly wannabe-fighter would *ever* be good enough for Yukina. Not unless she out and told him that, even.  
  
"Yes, I've fought with it," Hiei replied, his tone harder than before. "What of it, Yukina?"   
  
Even if he'd never admit it aloud, he loved to say her name to her. The way her eyes would shine just a bit brighter at being recognized by him, being one of the few he actually chose to speak to. He enjoyed the feeling that it made her pain just a little less, in hopes that maybe it would dull it entirely one day.  
  
"I was... just wondering... " she continued, giving him a small, half-willing smile. He felt his own face draw blank, and struggled to stay calm and expressionless. "Have you... that is, did you ever... "  
  
"Ever *what*?" he pressed, almost earnestly wanting to know now. If it was for her, if it was something she wanted---needed---had even the *slightest* desire for...   
  
She looked at him, her hands clasping in hope. At least, Hiei believed it to be hope, as that was the only feeling he could imagine coming from her. "Have you ever... met a demon... " She paused, and shook her head. "Ever met... my brother... ?"  
  
And the winds, once so cold, seemed to stop.  
  
*******  
  
No, that's where you're wrong: I *do* care. Tell me more about it.  
  
... I see. You really miss him that much, do you? A brother you don't even know, and haven't even *met*?  
  
... That's not to say that he doesn't know you, of course. It is possible that he doesn't know about you, but I wouldn't take that bet.  
  
Why not?  
  
I have my own reasons.  
  
*******  
  
"Shorty's been gone an awfully long time," Kuwabara grunted, scowling at the shadows of the two figures as they walked further into the trees. "I don't like it."  
  
"Pshh," Yusuke replied, shrugging and flopping himself down onto the grass. "Nothin' to worry about, *trust* me."  
  
Kuwabara was not ready to settle for such an answer, and waved an angry first at the nearly snoozing detective. "You---! Whadda *you* know, Urameshi?! That Shorty could be tryin' to steal my girl!"  
  
"'That Shorty' is also her br---" Yusuke began, before being silenced by a glare from Kurama. The red-haired fox demon-reincarnate cast the taller of the two boys a slight smile, and tried to calm him down some.  
  
"I'm sure that whatever business they have together won't take very long," he said assuredly. "And, afterall, *she* asked to speak to *him*, and not the other way around, Kuwabara."  
  
"Really," Keiko huffed, taking a seat next to Yusuke, who was most definitely asleep at this point. "She probably just wants to ask him why he was hiding, and doesn't want to embarass him."  
  
"She's got the right idea." Kurama smiled over at the tallest of the sextet. Kuwabara grunted in reply but sat down, however bitter the look on his face as he did so. He knew better than to mess with Hiei's affairs, though if he ended up hurting Yukina in any way, he'd pay for it.  
  
A lopsided grin appeared on the fighter's face as he began to imagine the ways that he'd pulverize the 'demon midget' for hurting his precious Yukina's feelings. Kurama saw his face and sighed.   
  
It was going to be a very *long* afternoon.  
  
*******  
  
Do you think so? That he stays away because of his own reasons?  
  
...   
  
I wish he'd forget them, then. Why doesn't he just come see me? He wouldn't have to stay, not forever, not even for a full minute. Just long enough so I could tell him how much I love him...   
  
I don't want to be so selfish, you see. I just want... I just want him to know. Do you... think he'd understand that?  
  
*******  
  
She looked away from him, her perfect eyes glazed over with sadness. "Oh. I see." was all she'd say, and it tore at him somewhere inside. What did she mean by that? She didn't see at all, and he could tell.  
  
Hiei didn't need his Jagan for something so obvious, not like that idiot Kuwabara. That boy could have had *twelve* Jagan eyes, and he *still* would have been lost in the dark. The demon resisted the urge to smirk, realizing that the girl before him was more important than taunting the fool. (Though, if he were somehow able to mix the two together, he'd be feeling quite perfect at the moment.)  
  
"He's insecure," Hiei replied. His tone was almost condescending. "He doesn't want you to look down at him or be disappointed in him."  
  
Yukina looked up at him, her eyes blurred with unshed tears. "How could I ever be disappointed in my own *brother*?"  
  
Hiei's eyes widened. Truly, he didn't know how to react. Slowly, he closed his eyes.  
  
"He doesn't want to hurt you."  
  
After a long-suffering sigh, Yukina turned her face toward the ground. "I know that. I just... I wish I knew more about him, that's all. Even his name, or a memory, or anything... "  
  
Hiei's face softened. He reached out with one hand slowly, its touch ghosting across her shoulders. Without warning, she turned and threw herself into his arms, and he stared, dumbfounded.   
  
Yukina hugged him tighter, into a full-out squeeze, before letting go and pulling her arms off his neck. She pulled back, her face rather blank.  
  
"I'm sorry," she apologized, looking at his bewildered and slightly flushed face. "I shouldn't have done that---I mean, I know you don't really get along with people well, and---"  
  
Hiei shook his head to stop her. "No, it's all right. You do what you want to, I'm not needed."  
  
A painful reminder, indeed.  
  
He turned to walk away---had actually taken those steps---when the girl cried out, "NO!", forcing him to turn around just with the sound of her voice.   
  
Embarassed, the girl gave his arm a tug with both of her ice-cold hands, looking down to the ground. "I'm sorry, that was rude... "  
  
The male nodded, turning towards her slightly. "You're right. It was. But I suppose I can forgive you for it."  
  
She blinked, then smiled up at him. Beside himself, and flustered, Hiei managed his own half-smile, only even a smile on a technicality.  
  
"Do you want to spend the rest of the day with us?" she asked, looking up into his own bright red eyes. He faultered again, and then shook his head slowly.  
  
"No. I don't 'do' togetherness." Then, upon seeing the disappointment on her face, he added: "Sorry."  
  
He was always disappointing her, even if she didn't know it yet...   
  
Yukina shook her head. "It's all right... We won't force you to come."  
  
He nodded. He knew she wouldn't.  
  
"I-if you ever do find my brother, though... You'll tell me, won't you?"  
  
He closed his eyes, not wanting to see her small, hope-filled face staring at his in desperation. "I will, you have my word."  
  
She smiled up at him. "Thank you. I know you want go back on your promise."  
  
He gave a slight grunt. "I *never* back out of a promise."   
  
This one... would be impossible for him to keep. He'd already made that oath when he'd recieved his Jagan... And it was made first, it would come first. His rules, his code, afterall. Even if it risked hurting and disappointing her, it would all be better in the end.  
  
Yukina smiled warmly at him again, and he paused. She took a step back towards the group, and he a step in the opposite direction, when she suddenly stopped and turned around.  
  
"Ah... " She attempted to speak, and Hiei turned around. "Hm? What is it, Yukina?"  
  
"N-nothing," she said, embarrassed. She turned her face away from him.  
  
Frowning, Hiei took that one step forward to meet her. He waited on, silent and questioning, as she tented her fingers and looked around nervously.  
  
He tilted his head, growing impatient, even with her. He sighed and started to turn, which is when she did it.  
  
She kissed him.  
  
Just a small peck on the cheek, nothing more than her lips touching his skin, but it got him to freeze. One hand gingerly reached up to touch the spot that her lips had blessed. She was looking away, her face hidden from view, and he just stared.  
  
*******  
  
It's not that selfish, once you think about it.  
  
You have a right to know, afterall.   
  
But he has a right to remain hidden, if that's what he truly wants...   
  
*******  
  
"Yu... kina?" he questioned, his hand falling to his side, and she gave him a small smile.  
  
"For my brother," she said gently. "Give him that, won't you?"  
  
He fought the urge to use sarcasm. "I doubt it will mean the same thing coming from *me*."  
  
"Oh well, then," she said, her smile still remaining. "At least tell him that I care that much, won't you?"  
  
Hiei's fists clenched under his cloak.   
  
"I can... do that much," he said finally, and her eyes brightened.  
  
"Thank you," she whispered again, and hurried back towards the troupe. She stopped and turned around quickly, very nearly tripping on her sandals, and gave him a quick, deep bow. He nodded in return and she turned around again, running back to the others, her smile just a little wider than he'd ever seen it before.  
  
His grip loosened, and he looked at the clearing with a small smile.  
  
"Yes... I'll give him your sentiments, Yukina. But I already know what he'll say."  
  
*******  
  
Thank you...   
  
*******  
  
*******  
  
A/N: Not so bad, I don't think. Aside from being horribly cliché and making me want to stab myself for the craptacular ending.  
  
And did you all understand the way I set it up? The conversation Hiei and Yukina had seperates each 3rd person set, see? And it goes Hiei, scene, Yukina, scene, etc. Get it? ^^v   
  
Too cliché for my tastes, personally. But decent, in a way. I think. ¬_¬  
  
---Gangsta Videl 


End file.
